评论
打印
THE ROOM into which the three were ushered was the Controller's study.
三个人被引进的房间是总统的书房。
"His fordship will be down in a moment." The Gamma butler left them to themselves.
“总统阁下马上就下来。”伽玛仆役长把他们留在了那里。
Helmholtz laughed aloud.
赫姆霍尔兹放声大笑。
"It's more like a caffeine-solution party than a trial," he said, and let himself fall into the most luxurious of the pneumatic arm-chairs.
“这倒不像是审判，而是请喝咖啡。”他说，然后倒进了最奢侈的气垫沙发椅。
"Cheer up, Bernard," he added, catching sight of his friend's green unhappy face.
“别泄气，伯纳。”他瞥见了他的朋友那铁青的不快活的脸，又说。
But Bernard would not be cheered; without answering, without even looking at Helmholtz,
伯纳却泄了气。他没有回答，连看也没有看他一眼，
he went and sat down on the most uncomfortable chair in the room,
只走到屋里最不舒服的一张椅子上坐下了。
carefully chosen in the obscure hope of somehow deprecating the wrath of the higher powers.
那是他小心选择的，暗暗希望能够多少减轻首长的恼怒。
The Savage meanwhile wandered restlessly round the room, peering with a vague superficial inquisitiveness at the books in the shelves,
这时野蛮人却在屋子里烦躁地走来走去。他带着一种模糊的表面的好奇窥视著书架上的书、
at the sound-track rolls and reading machine bobbins in their numbered pigeon-holes.
录音胶卷和编号的小格子里的阅读机线轴。
On the table under the window lay a massive volume bound in limp black leather-surrogate, and stamped with large golden T's.
窗户下的桌上有一本巨大的书，柔软的黑色人造皮封面，烫着巨大的金T字。
He picked it up and opened it.
他拿起书，翻了开来。
MY LIFE AND WORK, BY OUR FORD.
《我的一生及事业》，
The book had been published at Detroit by the Society for the Propagation of Fordian Knowledge.
我主福特著。是福帝知识宣传协会在底特律出版的。
Idly he turned the pages, read a sentence here, a paragraph there, and had just come to the conclusion that the book didn't interest him, when the door opened,
他懒洋洋地翻了几页，东看一句，西看一段，正想下结论说这本书引不起他的兴趣，门开了，
and the Resident World Controller for Western Europe walked briskly into the room.
驻晔西欧的世界总统轻快地踏进门来。
Mustapha Mond shook hands with all three of them; but it was to the Savage that he addressed himself.
穆斯塔法蒙德跟他们三个人—一握手，话却是对野蛮人说的。
"So you don't much like civilization, Mr. Savage," he said.
“看来你并不太喜欢文明，野蛮人先生。”他说。
The Savage looked at him.
野蛮人看了看他。
He had been prepared to lie, to bluster, to remain sullenly unresponsive;
他曾经打算撒谎、吹牛或是怒气冲冲一言不发。
but, reassured by the good-humoured intelligence of the Controller's face, he decided to tell the truth, straightforwardly.
但是总统脸上那亲切的聪明却叫他放下心来。他决心直截了当说真话。
"No." He shook his head.
“不喜欢。”他摇摇头。
